It Was Just A Matter Of When
by mysteryteenagelover
Summary: Rory and Jess study. Alone. Together. At least, that's how it starts...
1. In Which Rory Teaches Jess A Lesson

There was no way in hell that Rory Gilmore wasn't going to fall for him; it was just a matter of when. Jess Mariano was everything that Rory had dreamed about and nothing like what she expected. Jess was handsome; rugged, even, with that look that simultaneously said 'don't fuck with me' and 'come closer and see what happens'. After being the good girl with Dean for so long until their break-up over Linsdey last week, she yearned – without knowing it – for danger. She was done with wanting to feel safe and guarded. She wanted danger…she wanted someone to be rough with her and not treat her like one of her grandmother's breakable glass ornaments. She wanted to be thrown up against a wall or tossed down onto a bed. She needed someone to make her feel alive again.

Dean and his gentle kisses had irked her. They did the exact opposite of making her feel content and fulfilled – they made her realise, yet again, that something was missing. That she didn't want to be treated like a china doll. That she was passed the good-girl stage. She was seventeen and she needed more than Dean could've given her. In a way, she was glad that Lindsey had come between them. As much as it hurt her to lose Dean – her first kiss, her first boyfriend, and her first love – she recognised that she now had a chance for new experiences and a chance to see what was out there.

What was out there, of course, was Jess Mariano. For a bright, smart and together girl, Rory went remarkably to pieces whenever she was around Jess. Having already promised Luke that she would tutor him and being a girl of her word, she showed up at the diner for the first time a week after her break-up with Dean and loving the fact that he was wearing her favourite, bad-boy leather jacket. Tucking her books more carefully under her arm, she walked towards him, fighting the impulse to check her hair in the reflective windows of the diner. She fought her feelings of self-consciousness to the point where she could almost relax in his prescence. Almost.

Not that he'd ever talked to her before. He'd been in town almost a month, but she'd never had so much as a word from Jess adressed in her direction. He mainly skulked; outside Doose's, outside Stars Hollow High, or outisde the diner. Once, she and her mother had walked into the diner and Luke had glared so ferociously at his nephew that he'd nodded in their direction before staring straight at his pad as he took their order. There was no conceivable reason, that Rory could see, that would warrant her having any attraction to the boy whatsoever. Yet, there it was. Rory Gilmore: irrationally and completely head over heels for Jess Mariano.

"So…you're going to make me as smart as you." It wasn't a question. At the sound of his voice, Rory felt even worse than she had a few minutes ago. Placing the books on the table, she straightened them so that their edges lined up – just to have something to do with her hands. Jess dropped himself into the nearnest chair and pulled a pen from behind his ear. Rory found that disturbingly sexy. Shrugging off his jacket, his arm muscles flexed and relaxed as he draped it over the back of his chair.

"Right, so. English. _Romeo and Juliet_. Yes." Rory was unusually flustered, not to mention completely distracted by the movements of his pen as he twirled it between his clever fingers, brow furrowed slightly in concentration.

"Can you pass me the essay you've started, please?" Rory asked him. Even in her most confused state, she never failed to be polite. Even when she didn't want to be. She didn't want to be polite to Jess because he confused her. He made her question her judgements and her feelings, made her unsure of how she looked and what she said. She wanted him to go away and leave her alone. She wanted him to not make her feel like this. She also happened to want him to turn around and realise that she was there and that she wanted him. Of course, he wasn't going to. Right? _Yeah_, right.

"I haven't done it."

"Haven't done…what?" Rory had completely lost her train of thought, not to mention what she had in mind to say next. Trying to gather her thoughts, she composed herself slightly.

"Right…then we'll have to start from the beginning. Topic sentence?" Jess didn't say anything. He just leant back a little in his chair and continued to twirl his pen with those quick movements of his long, knowledgeable fingers. Rory swallowed, realising that this was going to be more work than she had anticipated when Luke had begged her to take on his nephew. Not that she minded. She'd never have said it out loud, of course, but any excuse to sit with Jess Mariano was fine by her. She decided to change the subject to see if she could get more than a five-word answer from him.

"I'm Rory," she ventured.

"I know. Luke told me that." Way to go Jess, she thought, six words this time. Congratulations. This definitely wasn't going to be easy. She tried to glare at him, but failed because she wasn't angry with him. Not in the slightest. But he must have noticed, because he looked down suddenly and tried to make amends.

"My uncle – Luke, he's close with your mom." Eight words this time.

"Why did you even agree to this?" Determined as she had been to play it as casual as she could, her natural curiosrity got the better of her as she stared at Jess. She couldn't figure him out. He'd never talked to her before; he'd glanced in her direction once because Luke would've death-glared him until he did. And now, here he was, reasonably calmly sitting across the table from her, still infuriatingly twirling his pen. Rory had to swallow hard and drag her mind away from imagining those fingers stroking her, touching…

Shaking her head visibly to clear it, she noticed Jess staring straight at her. Rory violently hoped that her eyes hadn't betrayed her imagination's fantasies to the object of said fantasies. Jess seemed to be considering how to answer her question. Finally, he said carefully,

"It's important to Luke that I graduate on time. Otherwise, I get sent back to live with my mum. And I'd rather stay with Luke."

Rory shook her head in wonder at the anger that was threatending to course through her. What had she expected? That he would admit that he'd wanted to study with her because he was in love with her and he'd do anything to be in the same room as her? For a sensible and rational girl, Rory had been acting very close to a girl with a teenage crush. On Jess Mariano, no less. Self-consciously touching her hair, she pushed _Romeo and Juliet_ back towards Jess, who smiled out of one side of his mouth. Dropping his eyes towards the text briefly, he smiled back up at Rory.

"Have chosen which speech you want to write about yet?" Rory asked him carefully.

"Yes, teach." Rory clenched one fist under the table, frustrated for the first time since sitting down in in the diner. Jess spun the pen in his left hand; while his right was propped under his chin, elbow resting on the table. He must have read something in her eyes, because he dropped his eyes back to the book open in front of him. His mouth moved soundlessly as he read one of Juliet's speeches, pen spinning all the while.

Finally, Rory unclenched her fist, and – in one quick movement – reached out across the table and flicked the pen out of his hand. Loudly. It clattered noisily to the diner floor and rolled to a stop against Rory's red Doc Martins. Jess's mouth was half-open in shock, but there was a trace of something else in his brown eyes that Rory couldn't quite place. Slowly, she leant down and took the pen between her fingers, straigtened up and lay it symetrically in the middle of the table. Jess reached for it just as she moved her hand away. There was the briefest of seconds where their hands brushed each other's, before Jess moved away. Flipping the pen right way up, he put it to his blank sheet of paper and began to write.


	2. In Which Rory Makes An Unusual Move

Rory glanced up at him, amazed. It was good. Better than that – it was fantastic. She would have been proud to turn in such an essay herself. But she didn't tell Jess that. She tapped her pen next to the title of the paper, which asked students to discss the differing interpretations of oiginal Shakespearean language. Rory nodded, and isolated the single mistake on the paper. It wasn't even really a mistake; she had been hard pressed to find anything wrong with Jess' insightful, not to mention neatly written paper. She drew a circle around it with a red pen, which gave her a strange rush of power. Control.

Control which vanished the second that Jess looked at her again. He gave her another irresistable half-smile and her brief feeling of control vanished, to be replaced with yet another surge of self-consciousness. She touched a hand to her hair, pushing her fringe out of her face in an effort to help herself concentrate. But she couldn't. No matter where her eyes came to rest, there was always something there that was more appealing to look at than even the most well-written paper on Shakespeare.

She tried looking at a spot just above Jess, but his hair was carelessly and irresistably tousled in the most appealing way possible. Looking down meant that her gaze shifted to his arms; muscled and resting lightly on the table, they made the daydream of being hugged and held close to his chest rise up rather unexpectedly. His chest. Lean but muscled, clad in a t-shirt featuring the Clash lyrics for Guns of Brixton, one of her favourite songs. She tried looking at the paper on the table, but his hands were in the way. Supple and strong, with long fingers that just _looked_ experienced, for godssake.

And his eyes constantly moved, resting first on his paper, then on the text, then on Rory's face – staring straight into her eyes – for a moment or two. Then back to staring at the table, the pen, the door of the diner and then back to Rory.

"I think…I think you need to adjust this sentence," Rory managed, gesturing to the red circle on the page. Jess nodded, biting his lip slightly and examinging the line she pointed to on his paper. He still hadn't looked into her eyes since the suggestion, so she took a deep breath and ploughed on.

"And I think that you could extend the paper to include a sort of introduction about the scene which the line comes from. Which is when Romeo asks her –" It was at this point that Jess chose to look at her again, and her words failed her. Without skippng so much as half a beat, Jess continued for her.

"...If she'll let him kiss her. Right."

"R-right…then start on the paragraph that discusses the two different interpretations of the line you've chosen. Which is…" Rory looked at the paper, pretending to remind herself which line he'd chosen to discuss. As if she would have forgotten. She just needed the courage to say it out loud. Jess waited patienly, eyes resting on hers all the while.

"…_You kiss by th'book_. Right?"

Jess' eyes never wavered. "Uh-huh."

Rory couldn't have looked away even if she had wanted to. His deep brown eyes didn't have a trace of a threat in them today. On the contrary, they were a chocolatey, warm reminder that he wasn't always just a bad boy. Rory seemed to be drowning in them – she couldn't bring herself to tear her blue eyes away from his. Finally, Jess made the first move. He reached across the table. There was a sharp intake of breath from Rory, until his hand curved away from her to pick up his paper.

"Do you think I've included everything?" Jess asked her, his hand hovering above the paper. It was a direct question.

"Sure," Rory managed, swallowing, "You've discussed the two major possible meanings. That "_by th'book_" could mean either "expertly" or "without passion". And you've elaborated _here_…and _here_…good." Rory was nodding to herself, checking his sentences off as she reread them.

"What do you think Shakespeare meant?" Jess asked her. Rory blinked. It was the last thing she expected to hear come out of his mouth. She had been expecting that he would be convincing her to let him leave or trying to talk her into taking it easy. Instead, here they were. The leather jeacket-wearing, insolsent, infuriating bad boy was initiating an intellectual conversation with Rory the bookworm. Rory tried to collect her thoughts. It wasn't easy. The part of her mind that actually had an opinion on the topic was wrestling with the part that desperately wanted Jess, both of whom were against the section that was worrying that he would think her opinion dull or generic.

"I think that Shakespeare meant 'expertly'," she chose her words carefully. "I mean, if their first kiss was 'without passion' –" she used finger quotes, and then immediately wished she hadn't – "then would they really spend the whole play desperately trying to be together? It sounds obivous, I know…" she trailed off, but Jess was nodding his head.

"It makes perfect sense," he agreed, staring straight into Rory's clear blue eyes, "If there's no passion at the beginning, there's not a hope in hell for the future." He said it like a matter-of-fact observation, but hearing the word 'passion' out of Jess' mouth sent Rory's heart beating in double-time for what must have been the hundredth time that night. Rory shook her head, taking the time to both slow down her heart and phrase her next question.

"Jess, why do you pretend not to be smart?"

The question seemed to catch him off guard, if such a thing were possible. For the first time that night, the mask of total confidence yielded the smallest crack. It was quickly smoothed back into shape, much to Rory's dissapointment. She had enjoyed catching a glimpse, however small, of the boy beneath the tough exterior. When it became clear that he wasn't sharing his answer with her, Rory grew in confidence enough to tell him,

"You're about to turn in a paper than a senior would be proud of, and you're only a junior. You could pass every exam at school; you could graduate early, go to college. You could figure out what it is you want to do…you could – you could do _anything_. Anything you want." This seemed to amuse Jess who delivered another half-smile and ran a hand through his already-messy hair, making to worse. Or better, Rory mused, depending on how she looked at it. She loved the "can't be bothered" look that his hair had. It was one of the many things that she suddenly loved about Jess.

He leaned forward towards her over the table, as if he was about to share a secret with her.

"All I want," he whispered, "Is to work at Walmart until I have enough money to save for a car and an apartment so I can see the world. I don't want to be in a town in the corner of Connecticut forever. I want to go to Prauge, Istanbul, Fez…"

Rory was quite literally lost for words. She dropped her eyes back to the table.

"Rory?" Jess asked. She made a careful note of something in the margin of her well-worn copy of _Romeo and Juliet_. Jess stood up and walked around to her side of the table, leaning in over her shoudler and looked at the annotation she made. Next to "_th'book_", she had written "_expertly, NOT without passion_." Jess turned his head sideways to face her.

Rory didn't think she could stand having him that close to her without doing something. She raised a hand to her forhead with the intention of pushing her hair out of the way, but before she could, Jess' hand gently touched the side of her face, stroking a strand back behind her ear. When he'd finished, his hand fell back to his side. And his eyes captured hers and held their gaze.

In later years, Rory would wonder what had come over her that night in the diner. The whole evening had driven her slowly crazy, she acknowledged that. She had untold reserves of pent-up, sexual frustration, she knew that too. But still, she would muse to herself, _how _exactly had she worked up the courage to lean forward and crush her eager lips to Jess'?


	3. In Which Rory And Jess Grow Closer

Perhaps the 'come closer and see what happens' allure of his eyes had finally overruled the 'don't fuck with me' threat. Rory guessed she'd never know – or at least, she would've if she hadn't been busy with other pursuits. Like, say, kissing Jess Mariano.

He had not expected that in the least. One minute, he had ben sitting across the table from an incredibly beautiful girl. The next second, said girl had been attacking him with her lips. But, he mused, slightly distracted as he kissed her back, the word 'attack' was used with the best possible connotations. Jess closed his eyes, partly in wonder and partly because Rory, with her eyes firmly closed, up close to his face and kissing him was one of the most intimate and overwhelming things that he had ever experienced. And that was saying something.

Rory's lips were different from how he'd imagined them. He thought that they would be cool, calm and careful… innocent. If he had had to guess, he would have guessed that she would kiss slowly and gently. If someone had told him that it was going to be like this, he would have asked them if they were feeling alright. Never, in his wildest – or his hottest – dreams, would he have imagined that her lips would have been hot, urgent, insistent on his. It was then that he realised – she may have been innocent, but not naïve by any strech of the imagination. It was as if there was something that she wanted from him and she wasn't going to stop until she got it.

Jess gave it to her. His lips were every bit as fierce as he kissed her back, plunging a hand into her hair to hold her face firmly to his. Rory would never have dreamed of twisting out of his grip – she was busy experiencing the best kiss of her relatively inexperienced life. True to her musings before she had entered the diner, Jess was rough with her. His lips ran over hers without gentleness, though not by any means without passion. His hands touched her somewhat wildly, pulling on her sleeve with the hand that wasn't tangled in her hair to bring her even closer. They still hadn't moved from their original position; her seated and him leaning down to her.

The whole evening had been like hours and hours of foreplay for Jess, and he decided to take control. He slid his other hand to her back, and half-pulled, half-guided her into a standing position. All the while, their lips never left eachother's – in fact, the movement made their mouths grow even more insistent as he pulled her up and out of her seat. As she stood, her whole body was pressed up against his, from the tops of her thighs up to her breasts. Jess gasped involuntarily at the contact and there was a sharp intake of breath from Rory. They fitted perfectly together. The curves of her slender body melded nicely to the hardness of his muscles and they leant against eachother as if it was a well-practiced activity for them.

In one quick movement, Jess rotated them so his back was to the chair that she had recently vacated. Rory gasped at his fluid exchange of their positions, but was more distracted by the fact that his hand had finally left her back and moved to her hip, and up to her waist. The touch started out gently, and then became rougher as he travelled around to her front. Laying his hand flat across her stomach, he used it to to stop her from moving as he took a step backwards and away from her. Their lips parted and Rory opened her eyes to discover the reason for their loss of contact. Jess slowly lowered himself into the chair, never taking his soulful eyes off her clear blue ones.

As she gazed straight at him, she briefly wondered how she had managed to be living one of her fantasies at this very moment. That she would be standing in the diner with Jess before her, holding out his hand – as he was right at that moment – for her to join him. She had never dared hope for so much as a smile from him – even a look thrown over his shoulder to her was stretching it, she had thought. Until tonight. Tonight, he seemed to finally want the same thing that she did. And that thing was that they be together, and she wasn't complaining. No, most certianly _not_ complaining.

In fact, she was taking a step towards him, putting her pale, gentle hand in his roughened one and allowing him to pull her towards him. She leant down, bracing both her hands on his shoulders and daringly, she leaned even further forwards until his face was just a blur in front of her. With perfect timing, Jess leant into her so that they could pick up where they had left off. This time, they were more familiar with the touch and taste of the other's lips, and they tore straight through the boundary that separated slight hesitation from complete and utter passion.

While her arms were still on Jess' shoulders, Jess' hands were busy trailing down over her shoulders, brushing the sides of her breasts on the way down and resting at her hips. He used his fingers to dig – not quite gently – into her skin. Somewhere in the depths of her mind, Rory realised what he wanted, but the conscious part of her was consumed with Jess and his kisses and his touch. Jess broke off, long enough to put his mouth to her ear and whisper,

"Come here…"

The loss of contact with his lips gave her a minute to reaccquaint herself with her thoughts. Rory looked down at Jess. Jess looked up at Rory. Rory took another step forward so that her legs were touching his. He used one of his knees to nudge her legs apart and dug his fingers into her waist at the same time. Rory carefully moved her legs to either side of his and straddled his lap. The contact on his lap made Jess shift and groan, never taking his eyes off her. He moved his hands around to the small of her back and pulled her even closer to him, to that her breasts were pressed up against him and their abdomens touched. They were so close that Rory felt the hitch in his breathing as she pushed herself against him.

Jess rested his hands on her knees as their lips joined again, and then – without warning – ran them up her legs. As far up her legs as he could possibly go. When he reached the top of her thighs, he let his hands rest there. Every so often, he squeezed them, enjoying the little shocks he gave her, which made her convulse slightly on his lap. Which, quite frankly, felt absolutely incredible. Most of her coherent thought had vanished at the first touch, but as his hands travelled steadily up her slender legs, Rory caught herself wondering what it would feel like without the jeans. Her hands were twisted in his hair, and she used the grip to pull him closer. There was no way that he was going anywhere – neither of them had entertained any thoughts of leaving since the first moment of the first kiss.

What Rory had forgotten, however, was that Lorelai had promised to come and pick her up when she was finished. If she had remembered, she would have had a little warning before the door to the closed diner swung open. As it was, her mother caught her straddling Jess' lap with his hands far too far up her legs to pretend that they were doing anything other than what they were doing. And the by the time the door had swung shut behind an astonished Lorelai, there was nothing left to do.


	4. In Which Lorelai Arrives Unexpectedly

Nobody moved.

Jess and Rory stayed frozen in the exact position they had been caught in. Which was not the ideal position to be in when your mother walks through the door, Rory acknowledged as her mind raced through embarrasment, guilt, helplessness and a slight edge of hysterical humour. Lorelai was standing in front of the closed door, one hand halfway to her mouth in shock. When she recovered, however, she crossed both her arms and cleared her throat.

Gone was Rory's brief aura of confidence. She dropped her eyes to avoid her mother's stare, then wished she hadn't because what she was now staring at was the evidence that Jess didn't want to stop anymore than she did. Finally, she had to move. Carefully, she slid one leg and then other from Jess' lap, steadying herself on his shoulders and climbed off him. Still staring downwards, she walked slowly to the door. Not even looking up at Jess as she went, she reached her mother, who seized her upper arm and marched her from the diner.

"Of all the…" her mother fumed, "I leave you for…anything could've…" It seemed that her mother was too angry to finish a single thought.

The door clicked shut in the night's silence behind them.

Lorelai released her arm and turned to face her.

"Way to go, girl!" Rory felt as stuned as if a train had just hit her in the face. Her mother was laughing somewhat hysterically.

"I'm sorry? Mum?" Could she possibly have heard what she thought she had just heard?

"Rory, he's _hot_! How did you manage to get that one?" Rory didn't quite know what to say.

"Natural good looks…and charm…" Her joke was uncertain. Lorelai was still laughing, clapping her gloved hands together.

"Mum? You're not…mad?" Lorelai shook her head, laughter finally dying down.

"Hon, you're seventeen and you're a good kid. I trust you, okay? I wished that you'd find someone to help you get over Dean, and now you have. Just be sensible – and be… together… somewhere without glass windows on every side! And don't give your old mother any more heart-attacks like that, alright?"

Rory was still slightly bemused as she answered, "Alright…"

Her mother laughed again, and looped her arm around her daughter's shoulders and walked her into the house.

"Now, we need to talk about protection – what do you think he prefers? The Pill? Condoms? Good old abstinence? Nah, scratch that last…"

"Mum!"

"Because it's clearly not –"

"Mum!"

"Now, come on honey, you know I only care about you. Latex, oaky?"

"Mum!"

Lorelai snickered, "Well?

"Please, for the love of all things holy, can we _not_ talk about this? Besides, you never listened in Sex Ed. I choose, not him."

"Rory, hon, I'm only concerned about your safety. You had to know this was going to come up…sorry – unintentional pun, there…"

"What happened to the 'good kid' and 'trusting me' idea?"

"It's in the diner with Jess."

"Oh."

... ... ...

"Jess. You're at my house." Rory ran her hands over the shirt that she had just put on, wondering whether it was too dull. She mentally pulled herself together. There would have been a time – provided that it was before last night – when she wouldn't have cared what anyone else thought of her clothes. Or her hair, or the way she stood or talked or ate. But now she found her self horribly conscious of those things, as well as half-a-dozen more, all equally irrationally.

In fact, Rory Gilmore looked hot. She was wearing a plain black button-up shirt with neckline that highligted her slim waist and hips, as well has paying tribute to her small, curved breasts. That, paired with a pair of skinny jeans not unlike the ones that Jess had slid his hands all over last night, made her look both mature and sexy. Face it, Jess mused, the girl looks damn hot!

"You left your books at the diner last night," he clarified, holding out her tattered copy of _Romeo and Juliet_, as well as her _Introduction to Shakespeare_ and her jotting pad full of old essay notes. She took the books from him and tucked them into her arms. It was at this moment that she noticed that Jess had the offending pen from last night tucked behind his left ear. That was almost too much for Rory. He was hot, he was smart and he walked around with a pen behind his ear and a novel in his back pocket. She didn't know that so many positive attributes could all be possesed by the same person. It didn't seem fair. And his other redeeming attribute, she added to herself, was that he was at least a little into her.

In fact, if Rory had known just how much Jess was into her, she would have been suitably shocked, not to mention slightly disbelieving. But it was true. Jess was surprised how fast he had realised that he wanted her, just from her sitting across from him, making intelligent comments and tucking her hair behind her ear the way she did. The way she looked shyly into his eyes. Most of all though, he loved the way that though she was clearly timid at times, she kissed like a teenage-boy's best fantasy. He wondered if she's been this way with Dean, then remembered that they'd broken up, so clearly not. Jess decided then and there that Dean was was either totally oblivious of Rory's sex appeal, or else he was gay and using Lindsey as a cover. All this ran through Jess' mind while he stood in the doorway, staring perhaps a little too obviously at Rory's body.

Which was something that Rory didn't miss, either.

"Did you…um, I mean, do you want to…is it – um?" The confusion in Jess' expression was probably about to be translated into an equally confused question, but before he could open his mouth, Lorelai appeared behind Rory in the hallway.

"Jess! How nice to see you! Come in! We have pop-tarts – I think – and soda – quite possibly – and maybe something else? Are you hungry?"

Jess seemed as overcome as Rory had been twelve hours earlier.

"No, I'm not. Thankyou, though. Rory was just going to lend me a book. Right?" If Rory hadn't been so busy wrapping her head around the fact that Jess and his gorgeous body were in her hallway, she would have responded faster to his little bout of improvisation. As it was, it hung in the air between them until she finally picked it up.

"Right…yes. Come on, Jess." She led him to her room, and as the door was slamming, her mother yelled,

"I'm going to Babette's. I'll be back in an hour, maybe, two hours tops. Rory, hon – have…fun. Bye, Jess," she added, and then leant aginst the closing door and whispered, "Get him, girl!" so that only Rory could hear. Jess was still shaking his head slightly as he looked around her room, quick eyes taking in her Harvard Wall, her impresive collection of books, and last of all, her bed.

"I would have thought that your mum would've been more into chopping me up into pieces. But…she was offering me pop-tarts."

"Yes."

"No mother has ever offered me pop-tarts before."

"No."

Jess looked around again.

"So…this is your bedroom."

"Yes."

"Do you know any other words?" Jess wondered.

"Other than yes and no?"

"Yes."

Jess shrugged out of his leather jacket and tossed it carelessly over her desk. Then, without waiting for an invitation, he traced his finger along the spine of a book that she had on her shelf. He turned it over and over in his hands.

"You've read _Dracula_?" Rory wondered why she wasn't surprised.

"Wow. Three new words in only one sentence. Impressive."

"Jess?"

"Seven times, yeah," Jess flipped the book open and quoted the first thing he saw.

"_She lent over him, lips at his neck, and it really seemed that she was preparing to…_" he stopped and looked up at Rory. "What _was_ she preparing to do?"

In barely more than a whisper, Rory answered, "_Bite_." Jess nodded, and smiled lightly. He closed the book with a snap that echoed through the silence, and put the book down on the desk. Rory was never quite sure how he got there, but all of a sudden, he was across the room and standing over her as she sat on her bed, twisting her hands in her lap.


	5. In Which Jess Visits Rory's Bedroom

Jess leant down until there was an inch left between their lips, but he didn't kiss her. He braced his hands on her bed on either side of her hips and lowered himself down, so that there was an even distace between their bodies all the way down to Rory's knees. This time, Rory couldn't close her eyes. Having Jess' face that close to hers with that look of lust on his face was almost too much to bear, but true to her inquisitive nature, she couldn't look away.

She slowly lowered herself onto the bed, promising herself that she would thank her mother for buying her a double to replace her old single matress. Bending up one of her knees, she used her foot on the bed's frame to push herself backwards, and Jess followed her, putting his hands on either side of her shoulders to stay hovering over her. Rory let her head fall back, exposing a long section of bare neck and chest. It was snowy white, so unlike the fake-tanned girls that Jess had been with before that Rory's skin bordered on irresistable for him. He dropped his mouth to the lowest point of skin that he could find, just above where it met the black shirt that he so loved on her. Using his teeth and tongue, he drew moans and intermittent gasps from Rory, pinned as she was beneath him.

And he hadn't even kissed her yet.

He slowly moved his way up to her chin until his lips hovered right over hers, barely touching. He lowered his whole body at the same time, so that his lips touched her slightly open mouth at the same time that his chest pressed down on her breasts, and his wonderfully hard stomach muscles pressed onto her flat, soft stomach. Distracting her with his mouth, he used his knee to nudge apart her thighs and then lay his hips down over hers.

Jess was torn between wanting to know how far he could push her and wanting to preserve that innocence that he loved about her. He dropped one of his hands to her breasts, gently touching one, and then the other in the same careful way that he had once imagined Rory would kiss him. The cautious feather of his touch drove Rory to make a move so uncharacteristic that in times to come, Jess would wonder if it wasn't just a wonderful figment of his imagination. She pressed a hand over his and pushed it onto her properly, so that he was completely cupping her. He gave into what she wanted him to do, but was afraid because despite the way she had kissed him, he still saw her as … innocent. Well, more innocent than he was, anyway.

He cupped her whole breast, massaging it roughly and drawing constant moans from Rory, which vibrated in his mouth and added a whole new dimension to their passionate kissing. The hand that wasn't occupied fell to her hip and started to explore the exposed inch of bare skin that showed between her shirt and jeans. Her skin was perfect – flat, taunt, smooth and pale. Jess' rough hands couldn't get enough of it, his fingers danced over it time and time again until they decided to explore higher up. The fabric was in the way, though.

Rory seemed to be having the exact same idea as he was. She reached down to help him, and between them, they managed to pull all the buttons undone. Several times, their fingers crossed paths, which drew another small half-smile from Jess. Once the offending garment had been removed, they wrestled with it until it was out of the way. Jess sat up, palm at her lower back, taking Rory with him because their lips stayed fused together the whole time. He was on his knees, which were spread apart over Rory's thighs. As she sat up, her smooth stomach ground –Jess didn't know how intentionally – up against him and drew another involuntary moan. Watching Rory's body touching him like that turned Jess on more than almost anything else that he'd encountered in the last twelve hours. Which included the extremely enjoyable and somewhat graphic dream that had plauged him all of the previous night and left him wondering at the fact that one single girl could be so sexy, and yet he'd lived in the same town as that girl for almost a month and had barely noticed her.

Locking eyes with her,Jess slowly and deliberately slid his hand onto her breast. Rory didn't move her gaze either. Jess used his thumb to tease her for a few moments, before Rory knelt up so that her mouth could reach his. It was the first time that she had been close to making a move of her own, and it was that which reassured Jess that she wasn't as unsure as he had initially thought. She knew what she wanted. Their knees touched as she moved, and so did their thighs, hips, stomach and chests. Jess moved his knees apart so that his head was slightly lower than hers, the perfect position to attack her neck with his lips. One of his hands never left her breast; it traced cirles, massaged, pinched, kneaded and rubbed her until she was thoroughly aroused and wanting more. His other hand moved to grip the back of her leg to pull her even closer. One of Rory's hands fell to the wrist attached to the hand that was gripping with back of her thigh, while the other gripped his shoulder.

If Rory had been capable of coherent thought at that moment, she would have marveled at his ability to multitask. If he hadn't been holding her to him, she might have had trouble satying upright. As it was, she was having enough trouble fighting back her impulse to rip off his shirt.

Jess seemed to be thinking along the same lines. He released his hold on Rory long enough to pull his own t-shirt over his shoulders. Rory, still suddering and out of breath from his earlier ministrations fell back to a sitting position on her bed. Freshly shirtless, Jess' wonderfully hard muscles drew Rory's hands. She touched them slowly, every curve and contour, running her hands all over his chest, shoulders, arms and down to his abdomen.

But when her hands strayed too far towards his jeans, Jess gently took hold of them in one of his and put them back on his shoulders. It wasn't that he didn't want her hands there – he did. So much that Rory wouldn't believe him if he tried to explain to him exactly how much he wanted her hands there. It was just that Rory was essentially a timid girl – which just vanished when he kissed her. His kisses seemed to break thought her barrier of shyness. And he didn't want to take every last piece of her innocence from her there and then. He didn't want her embarrased when they'd finished. He had to set the pace, because when they were kissing, Rory was incapable of doing so. He didn't blame her; _he_ could barely think straight when she was touching and kissing him. But the second he touched her hands, Rory's caution leapt back to the surface.

The barrier was back in place.

Rory jumped off the bed. One of her bra straps had slid down her slim shoulder, and she pulled it back up as she started searching for her shirt.

"Rory?" Jess asked, sitting up, torso still bare. Rory located the black article of clothing near the door and bent to pick it up. As she straightened, Jess' hands stopped her from turning it the right way around.

"Rory? What is it?" Rory shook her head and struggled out of his grasp, crossing her room to the window on the other side.

"I thought…I thought," Rory couldn't put he thought into words. She pushed her hair out of her face and tried again.

"Why did you stop me? We were–" Jess crossed the room to her and put his hands on her shoulders, forcing her to look into his eyes. "I just don't want to rush and ruin everything. You're amazing and I don't want to push you too far until you're ready."

Rory left his side again and paced back and forward in front of the door, embarrased.

"Jess…"

"Hey. Rory." Jess moved towards her for a third time, and this time she didn't move away from him, she just kept pacing.

"Rory," Jess tried again. Finally, he took control and pushed her up against the doorframe. Both hands on the wall on either side of her face, Jess pushed himself up against her, trapping Rory's body between him and the doorframe. He roughly took her lips between his and kissed her, hungrily. His tongue battled with hers, and since she was still angry, she fought him right back. Their lips yielded and fought for dominance simultaneosly, until they were both breathless and gasping.

Gradually, they slowed their pace until their lips were barely moving as Jess wrapped both his arms around her, and they stood together against the doorframe as they calmed themselves.


	6. In Which Jess And Rory Are Interrogated

**Author's Notes: I KNOW, I KNOW it's been absolutely forever, but I promise to be better from now on. You've all been awesome with your reviews. There is no better encouragement for a writer, seriously. Enjoy the chapter...and expect more smutty goodness from now on. Caio!**

* * *

When Rory was calm again, Jess touched his finger to her chin and tilted her face up to his. He touched her lips briefly once, twice, three times before pressing a hand to her breast. He had it perfectly sorted now; touch Rory's body in a place that made her moan, and then slide his tongue into her mouth when it was open. Perfect.

He traced a pattern on her skin around to her back, where his deft fingers touched the clasp of her bra. But before they could move to unfasten it, Rory looked up and screamed. Loudly.

"Mum!"

"Rory."

"How long have you been standing there?"

Lorelai didn't answer, she just turned sideways to walk past Rory and Jess in the doorway, picked up Jess' shirt, which unfortunately had a slightly innapropriate image across the front and handed it to him. Jess nodded and pulled it quickly over his head, giving Rory an embarrased smile as he did so. Rory, who was too embarassed to smile, stole a frightened glance at her mother, who was busy standing over Jess to make sure he got dressed. Rory picked up her shirt and was beginning to button it when her mother put a hand on both of their shoulders and steered them out of the room.

Releasing Rory, she frog-marched Jess down the hall and to the front door.

"Better be carrying protection in there, punk," she heard her mother muttering.

"Mum!" Rory yelled from the kitchen.

"Loin-fruit!" her mother called back, and Rory shook her head. She was doing up her buttons when her mother crashed back into the kitchen and grabbed a hold of both of her hands.

"Rory!"

"Mum?"

"Rory!"

"What? You told me to go get him."

"I didn't mean get that _much_ of him!"

"Sorry?"

"I'm serious. Rory, I've never regretted having you for a second – but being a teenage mother was never something I wanted for you –"

"Mum…"

" – and I know it turned out amazing for us, but you _have_ to be careful, because things happen – "

"Mum…"

" – and I just want you to be really careful, honey, because –"

"Mum! I _have not_ had sex with Jess!"

" – I know you…Wait. What?"

"We're not having sex, mum. We're just – getting to know eachother." Rory tapered off, the excuse sounding feeble even to her own ears.

"An activity which requires both parties to be topless, I'm sure. Or is that what how the cool kids 'get to know eachother' nowadays?"

"That was…nothing. We were just talking –"

"Topless? Was that my bra, by the way?"

"Yes, mum, we were talking topless. Sure. And just because you steal my bras does't mean I nick yours. Some of us have morals."

"Morals. Right. Like talking topless – "

"Mum! I swear if you say the word 'topless' _one_ more time…"

" – I'll be disembowled - "

" - on the spot – "

" - duly noted."

"Good."

"Fine."

Lorelai finally dropped her hands, and Rory busied herself doing up her buttons. Lorelai was halfway to fridge when she turned on her heel and grabbed ahold of Rory's shoulders. Rory exploded.

"Can I _please_ do up my shirt now? Then I can stop being _topless_…"

"Dirty!"

"Mum!"

"Sorry."

Lorelai waited until the last button had been fastened and Rory had her hands on her hips before she steered Rory into one of the kitchen chairs and sat her in it, before pulling up a second chair and pulling it up alongside Rory's.

"So – was it good?"

"Mum!"

"Well?"

Rory dropped her eyes to the table before she answered, "Yes, mother, it was quite satisfactory."

"Quite satisfactory? What are you, eighty?"

"Okay, it was amazing!"

"Only amazing?"

"It was fantastic, it was incredible, it was incomparable, magnificent, stunning, it was unbelievable, it was – I'm out of adjectives, but –"

"I'm not. Marvellous, fabulous, wonderful – I'm out too. How can I be out of words? That has never happened to me before…"

"Ah – mum?"

"Right. Honey, I'm so happy for you. Three things. I love you, you're the greatest kid in the world, and take your own protection – boys have been scientifically proven to have worse memories than girls – "

"Mum!"

... ... ...

"Jess. Where the hell have you been? I get up and you're gone. Again."

"Out."

"Out where?"

"Out – there," Jess gestured vaguely out the window.

"Out there where?"

"Out there – there."

"Jess."

"I was out, okay?"

"Yes, we've established that. Jess –"

Jess put his hands on his Luke's shoulders.

"Worry not, uncle."

"Jess. You're hair's – like that."

"Like what?"

"It's all – messy."

"According to you, my hair's always messy."

"No, now it looks different messy."

"Different messy? Luke, really, this is sinking to a new intellectual low, even for you."

"Hey! And it _does_ look different messy. Like someone's been grabbing it for some reason."

"My hair's fine."

Jess ducked in front of his mirror and tried to make his hair look the way it usually did. What had Rory been doing? Of course, he could answer that. And why hadn't he realised? He laughed to himself; he could answer that one, too.

"Jess – is that –"

"Burn."

"From?"

"Walmart."

"From Walmart. You have a burn from Walmart."

"That's what I just said, didn't I?"

"What from at Walmart?"

"From Walmart."

"What's that, then?"

Luke was pointing to another mark on the other side of his neck this time.

"A burn."

"Another burn. From?"

"Walmart."

"From Walmart. You have a burn from –"

"Didn't we just do this?" Jess interrupted, trying to pull his collar over both of his 'burns' at the same time.

It didn't work.

... ... ...

Clatter.

Something clinked against his windowsil.

Clang.

Something clinked against the guttering on the roof.

Crash.

Something bounced off the window. Someone's aim was getting better.

He stuck his head out, hoping and praying that it wouldn't get hit with whatever was assulting the architectural features of his bedroom window.

"Rory?" he squinted through the darkness, "Or maybe I should say Romeo. Aren't I supposed to be standing under _your window_?"

"Thought I'd mix it up a little."

"Right…What was that crash?"

"I ran out of dirt clumps."

"So you threw…"

"A pebble…"

"Right…"

"Come down here?"

Less than thirty seconds later, Jess was down on the pavement outside the diner and had Rory up against the brick wall. Halfway through assulting her mouth with his lips, Rory gasped and pulled away.

"Common indecency!"

They both groaned. It was Kirk.

"Don't know _what_ mother would have to say about all of this…"

Jess lowered his voice and put his lips to her ear, "Maybe we should…" Rory nodded, and the two of them disappeared inside the diner, still hearing snatches of what Kirk was calling after them,

"…Only trying to enjoy my evening stroll with cat-Kirk…"

Jess closed the diner door, and immediately grabbed ahold of Rory's waist and pushed her up against the glass, lips to hers in less than a second. After running his tongue over her lips briefly, he pulled away to look into her eyes.

"Rory. Where - ?"

Rory glanced over her shoulder, and then back to Jess.

"I know."

And taking ahold of his hand – the first time they'd actually held hands – she led him to the back of the diner. Ducking through the checked curtain, they skirted the stairs and slipped soundlessly inside the supply cupboard.

"Is Luke upstairs?" Rory asked, breathlessly.

Jess nodded through the darkness, "But if we're quiet…


	7. In Which Jess Is Good At Everything

**I know it's been a while again, but hopefully these chapters are as good as the first ones. Promise to upload as soon as possible from now on. Reviews ALWAYS appreciated. mtl.**

**... ... ...**

Jess had been waiting all day for Rory, and he didn't intend to wait a second longer. Without hesitation, he seized her shirt and walked her backwards the two steps to the nearest wall inside Luke's storeroom. She threw up her hands to break some of the impact, but still thudded hard against the brick. But it didn't hurt – on the contrary, it only riled her up further. Finally, she was receiving a little of what she had dreamed of when she was with Dean but never quite received. She had found somebody who was wonderfully rough with her – somebody who didn't think that she was deilcate or breakable. Rory was thrilled that she had found someone that handled her in a way that excited her – turned her on. Jess treated her like a woman.

Breaking off their kiss for a moment to stroke some hair out of her face, Jess looked down in the near-darkness and saw that her shirt had 'reading is sexy' emblazoned across the front. Biting back a laugh, he continued his attack on her mouth, lips pressing still more firmly against hers until they parted.

His hand slid across her belly, pushing her further against the wall. Daringly, it seemed to Jess, she'd worn a shirt that revealed a good deal of flat stomach, which he covered in seconds with his scorching touch. Arriving at her hips, his hands travelled up to her breasts, firmly encased in her tight-fitting green and yellow shirt. He started off slowly, just using two fingers to tease her as he rubbed her breasts in circles on the outside of her shirt. Rory was moaning by this time, but she wasn't about to let his mouth move away from hers.

Jess was – quite frankly – amazed at how quickly he could turn her on. He knew that he was incredibly aroused just by touching her – he couldn't even see anything yet and already he was having to kick his self-control into gear. The girl pinned between him and the wall was amazing. Her eager responses to his wandering hands made him want to do more to her – want to push her over the edge until she was clinging to him, unable to stand up.

Rory couldn't believe that twenty-four hours ago, Jess had been a figment of her dreams and daydreams – her fantasies. And the real-life Jess was so much better. His every touch and every kiss had her gasping for breath – it was incredible. Sure, she had enjoyed being kissed before, she had enjoyed being held, but she'd never been kissed or touched like this. This was amazing, as she'd known that Jess would be. She remembered thinking that his fingers had simply looked experienced – and damn it if she hadn't been completely right about that and every other part of him, too.

Rory ran her fingers through Jess' hair, messing it up even more than it already had been. Jess made mental note to fix it before he ran in to Luke again – if he had to hear another lecture on his hair being 'different messy', he'd –

And abruptly, all thoughts of Luke were driven clean out of his head by Rory's hand creeping over the hand that was laying across her breast and pushing it further onto her. Her hand dropped back to her side at the same time as her head fell back – as far back as it could with the wall in the way, moans escaping her slightly parted lips. Jess closed his eyes briefly at the sound and moved his hand slightly, pushing it in towards her even more. His chest pressed up against her meant that he could feel every hitch in her breath, every groan vibrating as he teased her.

Jess' lips moved slowly across her throat and down to her chest. He sucked on the spot that he'd discovered yesterday which made her moan, leaving a reddened patch on the skin. He smiled to himself as he imagined her trying to cover it up before she saw her mother again. It almost made him laugh, but he was too busy trying to taste as much of Rory as he could to concentrate on any single thought. He pulled his self-control tighter as Rory shifted against him, biting down on his own lip as she rubbed against his jeans.

He kissed as far down as he could until his mouth met the join between her skin and her shirt. Rory's hands weren't still either; they were running lightly all over his shoudler muscles and down his back. His skin, still cool from the outside winter air responded to her warm hands with small shivers that sent his mucles rippling, exciting Rory even more. His hands felt for the bottom of her shirt, pushing it up and up until it came to rest under her breasts. Rory, eager to help him, tugged it up and over her head. As soon as they threw it to the floor, Jess pulled her body up against him again. Her simple black bra had him desperate to see what was underneath it – it drove him mad the way no fancy, lacy lingerie ever had in the past. The plain innocence of Rory's bra was a far better turn on – it had him biting his lip again in an effort to hold himself back from ripping it straight off.

Rory touched her lips lightly to one side of his mouth, then the other. She nudged his lips gently with her tongue, before opening her mouth completely at Jess' command. Kissing him forcefully, she fell back against the wall, her hands running across the sides of his jeans as she steadied herself against him again. Growling now, Jess' clever fingers dealt with her bra, which fell undone to the floor by their feet. Jess gasped out loud as Rory's torso was completely revealed to him.

Jess had to work hard not to lose control right then and there. She was perfect. Slender shoulders, small but perfectly round and perky breasts, slim waist and hips...the only problem was that the rest of her was still shielded from his view. He felt irrationally angry towards her jeans at that moment. Rory hadn't been still and silent throughout Jess' musings; she had moved her hands down, down, and pulled his shirt up to uncover his stomach and half of his chest. When he was brought out of his blissful fantasy about what lay under her jeans, he helped her throw his shirt back over his shoulders and onto the floor somewhere at their feet. In fact, as long as it stopped covering Jess' body, Rory didn't care where it went.

Feeling her naked breasts pressing up against his bare chest was quite honestly one of the best feelings that Jess had ever experienced. Not having the clothing barrier added a whole new layer of excitement to their activity, causing him to groan continuously into Rory's mouth. Half-naked Rory gave Jess a whole new playground to explore. His mouth left her lips and danced across her chin and down her neck. Leaving a hand at the small of her back to keep her upright, Jess bent and threw out a hand so that her knees buckled, and then he was holding her in his arms, resuce style. He crossed the tiny room in one spin and a stride and dropped her to her feet in front of a shelf that was about his waist height.

Realsing what he was doing, Rory bent her knees to jump as he put both his hands on her waist and lifted her to sit on the shelf. It creaked, but held. He wriggled a knee between her legs and forced them apart, standing in between them, so that his stomach pressed up against her. His mouth was perfectly aligned with her chest, and the minute his tongue nudged against her left breast, Rory let out a gasp that was more like a soft scream. Never moving his mouth away, Jess chuckled.

"You'll have Luke down here, you know."

Rory closed her mouth and bit down on her lip, hard. It wasn't easy. Jess' mouth felt wonderful – he kept changing pressure and speed so that she never knew quite what to expect. She wrapped her legs around his hips, knees digging into him to push as much of herself against his body as possible. One of her hands was well tangled into his dark hair, keeping him right where she wanted him. The other was braced up against the wall behind her head, fingers digging in to stop herself from crying out. Her eyes were shut and her breath came in ragged gasps, especially when Jess started undulating his hips ever so slightly against her. At one point, Jess grinned against her and switched to her other breast, replacing his mouth with his hand on her left.

"Why do you...have to – be...so...good – at everything?" Rory managed to ask him. Jess just smiled and bit down gently, making her convluse and squeeze him tighter.

"Natural talent," Jess somehow managed to answer, his mouth still open against her.

Rory moaned quietly; Jess' voice was getting rougher and darker, and she honest to God thought she might lose it if he kept talking.

Jess' phone chose that moment to vibrate in his pocket against the inside of Rory's thigh, which made her scream again – not so softly this time. Jess covered her mouth with his free hand.

"You really want Luke to walk in right now, don't you?"

Fighting for breath, Rory asked, "You're not going to answer that?"

"Hell no."

... ... ...

Sometime later, cat-Kirk's midnight stroll was once again interrupted as Rory crossed his path rather unexpectedly. She tripped her way out of the diner while simultaneoulsy tying up her touseled hair and tugging her shirt back down to her hips.


	8. In Which Jess Rolls Down A Hill

"Rory?" Something – or someone, she realised – was tapping on her window as she reread _Dracula_ for the fourth time. She was having enough trouble concentrating as it was – now that the book had become one of her 'Jess' things, it was difficult to so much as look at the front cover without imagining her legs around Jess' waist, or his lips attacking that soft spot on her neck that Dean had never found, or the two of them writhing against each other as his mouth brushed over her lips. She dragged her mind away from the subject of Luke's nephew for the hundredth time that night as she glanced over her shoulder at her window.

"Are you there?" She should have guessed. It was Jess.

Regretfully, she turned her book face down on her bed to save the page and climbed off her bed and over to the window.

"What– " she began, as she dropped to her knees to bring her face level with his, "–are you doing outside my window at midnight?"

"It's ten to one, actually," Jess corrected her, "and I could ask what you are doing staring out your window at ten to one on a school night?" As he spoke, his eyes took in the singlet that she had worn to bed that night.

"So…are you coming?"

"What? Where?"

Jess shrugged, "Out." Rory shook her head, but when she realised that Jess was serious, she stood up, crossed her room and dragged on yesterday's skirt. Jess' eyes widened as she stood, taking in the long, slender sight that was her legs as she walked away from him. She turned away from him as she dressed – despite everything that they'd done and all she'd allowed him to do to her, she still felt slightly uncomfortable when she felt like Jess was studying her figure so carefully. Jess was shuffling slightly on the spot, amused but also incredibly turned on. He hadn't taken his eyes off her from the moment she had turned to look at him. He didn't think that it would ever cease to amaze him that Rory could turn him on so much, just by walking around, hell, even her gaze could do it for him.

He didn't say anything as she knelt back down at the window, he just reached out to guide her hands off her stomach and onto his shoulders.

"Nothing there I haven't seen before," he reminded her, using his grip to pull her closer and kiss her.

"I must say," Jess managed, in between kisses, "that – Star's Hollow is…_growing_ – on me…"

Rory pulled her lips away, partly in astonishment, and partly not to miss a good mocking opportunity. She was her mother's daughter, after all.

"Jess Mariano? _Likes_ Star's Hollow?"

Jess dropped his eyes, and then looked back up at Rory as she lent out of the window to look into his eyes.

"It's not…terrible…" he amended, "I mean, I've hardly seen any of it because I've been hanging around near Luke's – and there's somewhere that I want to show you."

Rory stood up, moving away from the window. Jess sighed as her hands slid out his grip.

"Where are you going?" he managed to ask her.

"The front door."

"Why don't you just climb out the window?" he asked, as if it was the most natural thing in the world to jump out of a bedroom window after midnight. Rory smiled, suddenly shy in his presence. Her old feelings of timidity were coming back to her. Jess had surprised her and she had gone along with it, but now that she had time to breathe and realise what was going on, shy Rory was back. Taking his outstretched hand, she wriggled out of the window and landed beside him. It was a less than graceful manoeuvre, but Jess just laughed and looped his arm around her shoulder to lead her into the darkness.

-

"This is what you wanted to show me?"

"Yes."

"It's a bridge."

"Yes."

"Anything particularly special about the bridge?"

"Yes."

"Eighteen."

"What?"

"I was just counting how many until we reach twenty."

"Right."

"Jess? How long are you going to make me do this for?"

"Over there– " Jess pointed, " –that's where Luke pushed me in on my first day here."

"Bet you deserved it."

"Harsh."

"True?"

"Yeah."

"What are you doing?"

"I'm sitting down. Sit down with me?"

Rory didn't say anything; she just sat next to him on the hill that banked on the river.

"This is practically the only piece of town I've seen."

"And..."

"I like it."

So with that, Jess leant over and simultaneously pushed Rory's hair out of her eyes and kissed her lips. She moaned slightly s the hand dropped from her forehead to her collarbone and down to her chest in one quick, smooth movement. His other hand crept upwards at the same time as his tongue slid into her mouth. His rough hands covered both her breasts, and her mouth left his as her head fell back in pleasure, her mouth open in a gasp. She arched her back, pushing herself further into Jess' hands and gasping at the sensation. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, and a small breeze caught her hair and blew it across her shoulders. Rory had momentarily forgotten that they were outside, but the wind reminded her and she pushed Jess' hands off her regretfully.

"Jess…no…"

"What? Rory – is something wrong?" Rory shook her head, hair falling over her shoulder as she did so.

"It's just that – we're outside. Right? We're outside and it's…I – you make me lose control. Jess – you make me forget where I am and what time it is-"

"Problem?" Jess grinned, as he pushed himself closer to her and danced a hand across her chest again.

Rory shook her head, "Don't do that…"

"I like doing that…" he told her, unmoving. Rory sighed and pushed him off her. Perhaps she pushed a little too hard, because – being on a hill – Jess rolled downwards and towards the river. She heard his boot bounce of something. He swore loudly, twice, before throwing out a hand to find something to grab onto. Finding nothing, he swore – again – louder this time, before rolling to a stop just before the bank. He struggled to his knees, the breath knocked out of him momentarily.

"Are you trying to push me in too?" he asked, slightly out of breath, "I'll notify Luke. You two can form a team. You two can have matching sweatshirts – "

Rory had run down the hill after him, and helped him back to his feet. Then, she pushed herself closer to him to kiss him briefly.

"That was my apology," she whispered.

"Rory – you nearly killed me! I think I deserve a little…" Their lips joined again and this time Rory gripped his jacket to pull him against her.

"You're such – a drama queen," she told him, when they broke off to catch their breath.

"I forgive you," Jess offered, formally, and sat down again. Rory joined him, and he leant forward again. But his lips met Rory's fingers.

"I want to know…" she began, and Jess frowned.

"Know why you're not kissing me? Y'know, I was sort of beginning to wonder that myself –"

Rory chose to let that one slide.

"Why you're only nice to me?"

"I'm only – what?"

"You don't treat Luke as well as you should, you're rude to Miss Patty and even my mom…"

"This is important to you?"

"Yes it is."

He cocked his head to one side, "Really?"

"Jess…"

"Rory – if it's that important to you, then I'll try to be nicer. I was just so – angry – to be stuck here. But now that Stars Hollow is turning out to be better than I expected, then I'll try. I swear."

"Really?"

"Anything for you, Rory."

Rory almost believed him, if the hint of a laugh hadn't crept into the last syllable of her name. But she nodded. She didn't believe that he would succeed in trying to get on with people. That wasn't his style – getting on with people wasn't his default setting. But she did believe that he would try, because sitting across from him in the dark by the river looking into his eyes made Rory feel like she could trust him. It also helped that his hair was messed up just the way she liked, and that the creases in his leather jacket were glinting in the moonlight. And if Jess could be nicer, perhaps her mother would approve of him slightly more than she currently did, and then she could finally tell her mother what was going on between her and Jess.

Of course, she'd have to figure that out herself first.

"So?" Jess asked, moving towards her again. Her heart sped up.

"After your great fall?" Rory teased, "Are you sure you're up for it?"

She realised what she had just said, and promptly turned red and dropped her eyes. Which was unhelpful in slowing her frantically beating heart as she saw that Jess was – indeed –up for it.

Smiling at her embarrassment, she leant into Jess and the two of them sighed at the same moment as their lips joined. Rory found that her embarrassment and her shyness immediately deserted her when she felt Jess' lips. They distracted her, yes, but they also made her feel like he would kiss her no matter what. They gave her the confidence to laugh at herself – to realise that she could just _be_ herself. Gone – or almost gone – was the timid Rory that had walked into the diner three days ago. Gone was the Rory who could barely bring herself to look into Jess' eyes and gone was the girl who dreamt about having Jess. Now she _had_ Jess, and it made everything in her life seem a little bit less complicated and a little more together.


	9. In Which Rory Loses Her Inhibitions

**Another update, as promised, thank you everyone so much for all of your fantastic reviews – they make me WANT to keep writing (yes, that was a hint)! As always, a million thank you kisses to my beautiful beta – couldn't do it without you!**

**Enjoy.**

Jess caught hold of her thigh and dragged it across his body. Rory jumped involuntarily as her leg brushed over the very thing she had blushed at the thought of a few moments before. Now that Jess' face was inches from her, his eyes almost black with desire, it didn't make her face change colour – it made her breathing hitch and her fingers curl around Jess' shirt. She shifted slightly and found her knees on either side of Jess' hips and one hand braced against the ground next to his head. Distracting her with his mouth, he reached out both hands and pushed her knees out from under her so that she fell lightly to lie across his muscled frame. Rolling over so that he was once more on top, Jess slid his fingers under the v-neck of her shirt and dragged it to one side, completely exposing her breast.

His mouth attacking it felt so good that Rory completely forgot how to be embarrassed. Never mind that she was lying on the ground at the river at one in the morning or past it while her mother thought she was asleep in her bed. She was lying underneath Stars Hollow's Most Wanted (Taylor had neither forgotten nor forgiven the fake murder incident) with her shirt covering next to nothing as she let Jess' mouth slowly drive her crazy. The moans and gasps that escaped her mouth shocked her – she had never known pleasure to be like this before. Dean's gentle hands had hardly ever left her waist and his mouth stayed at her lips for the duration of their relationship, and Rory was finally experiencing what could happen when hands and mouths roamed across her body.

Slipping his hands underneath the backs of her knees, he pulled her legs over his hips so that Rory was gripping him on both sides. Jess moved his weight to his knees so that he could continue his ministrations. Bracing once hand next to her shoulder so he didn't crush her, he let the fingers on his other hand wander from the back of her knee to her thigh, and then higher. Brushing them across the outside of her underwear made Rory thrash her head to one side and writhe underneath him. He used two fingers to stroke her, mouth and tongue still fixed to her chest. As before, Rory marvelled at Jess' ability to do more than one thing to her at once.

She grew short of breath as she gasped for air, the wind knocked out of her by Jess' strong hands and insistent mouth. Her fingertips and cheeks began to tingle as she fought to breathe in enough air. Her breathing grew so ragged and irregular that Jess lifted his head to look down at her and ask in a whisper,

"Are you alright?"

Rory could only manage a nod, fighting as she was for breath. Jess let his fingers trail back down her legs before rolling off her.

"Jess?"

"I just didn't want to push you too far."

"You know I'm less experienced than you are." It wasn't a question.

"Do you know how far I've been?" Jess asked her.

"I guess you've..." Rory trailed off and dropped her eyes but they both understood.

"And that doesn't – scare you?"

Rory shook her head, "No. Should it?"

Leaning towards her again, and in barely more than a whisper, he said, "No."

He touched his mouth to her lips again, and then sat up completely, Rory's head finding his shoulder. She giggled.

"What?"

"I'm just imagining what my mother will say when I come home and she asks me what I've been doing and I say 'Jess'..."

"Well, now I don't think that's completely accurate – yet," Jess warned her, kissing her a second time. Rory giggled again, but kissed him back. Jess broke it off this time, looking over his shoulder.

"What is it?"

"I just don't want your mom coming out here and killing me."

Rory laughed, but leant forward and they kissed a third time. Her curious hands roamed to his shirt and his shoulders, tongue tracing against his the whole time. Jess had to take a minute to clear his head. He could hardly believe that in three days his life had turned so completely around. He hadn't wanted to come here a month ago, and on Monday he had still hated everything and everyone in this small town, with its innocence and its friendliness and its knowledge of everyone living there. Now it was Wednesday night – or to be more accurate the early hours of Thursday morning – and he had the most beautiful girl he had ever seen on his lap, legs straddling him and hands discovering the best path up and under his shirt.

Rory was genuinely curious. She had never been past the kissing stage with Dean, despite their almost two-year relationship. To have Jess' hard muscles rippling underneath her interested hands and the evidence of how much he liked her pressing into her thigh turned her on almost as much as Jess' wonderful, mind-blowing hand-mouth combination. Her hands touched every inch of his chest and shoulders, before she reached around to run her fingers over his back. Jess hadn't been still as Rory was on her journey of discovery; he had pushed her slightly sweaty hair out of her face and was placing open-mouthed kisses all across her neck. He kept changing the pressure, and Rory convulsed slightly every time he did so. Rory's head fell back every time his tongue ran across her skin, and then lifted her face back to his to catch her breath. Eventually exhausted, Rory moved sideways off his lap and caught sight of Jess' watch. It was two thirty in the morning.

"Jess?"

He mumbled something against her throat, which made her close her eyes and breathe in suddenly and momentarily forget what she was going to say.

"Jess?"

"Yeah?" He finally moved his lips from her skin and looked into her eyes.

"I've got to go home."

"Why?"

"Because it's two thirty in the morning."

"So?"

"So I have to get up for school in about four hours."

Jess swore, and then helped Rory to her feet. Sliding his fingers into hers, Jess walked her slowly all the way back to her window, which was still open. He started to kiss her goodnight, which was lengthened considerably by the fact that she fell against the wall, out of breath but refusing to let his mouth move from hers. Helping her slide back through the window gave Jess another decent view of her perfect body, which did nothing to help him calm down as he started back towards Luke's.


	10. In Which Jess And Rory Invent A New Game

"You're wrong." Rory smiled mischievously as she said it, glancing over her shoulder to see how he would take it.

"Don't tell me I'm wrong." Jess caught her around the waist from behind and held her to him. She could feel his beating heart against her back.

"But you are." She spun around to face him, never breaking the circle of his arms around her.

"I'm never wrong." His eyes narrowed as he studied her face, flushed slightly from chasing him up the stairs to Luke's apartment.

"You are now." She walked backwards, pulling him with her to sit on his bed.

"Shall we settle this the old-fashioned way?" His face showed only innocence, wide eyes and small smile, but Rory knew better than to trust that face. She decided that two could play his game and wriggled out of his arms. Rory stood, turning to face him, hands on hips and jaw set determinedly.

"Please."

"But this time..." Jess trailed off and leant forward, stroking a strand of hair out of her face to whisper in her ear. His rough hand barely touched her cheek, but the gesture still made her eyes flutter closed at the sensation. His hands lingered longer than strictly necessary at her face, brushing across her skin and making her breathing speed up ever so slightly in anticipation. Rory's eyes widened as she nodded her agreement.

"Only if you -"

She nodded, "I do."

"Only as far -"

"I know."

"I don't want -"

"Jess -"

"Fine...but first, we have to lay down some ground rules..." Jess' darkened eyes sparkled imperceptibly as Rory nodded, grinning most uncharacteristically as she reached for his hand to curl her fingers around his wrist and pull. He slid from his bed to the floor, sitting directly across from her and staring into her eyes.

"Do I light the candle, then?"

"Please."

… … …

"Firstly...no touching..."

The one candle glimmered in the middle of Jess' bedroom, lighting up Jess' face in a way that made the shadows dance across his chin and his eyes glint evilly. It fell softly on the curves of Rory's cheeks and lit up her face as she smiled, as if daring him to challenge her. Everyone knew that Jess couldn't resist a challenge.

Jess chuckled, "And that goes for both of us?"

Rory nodded, "You behave yourself, mister."

"Secondly?"

"Secondly...no cheating."

"Would I ever cheat?" Jess stared straight at her, poker-faced.

"I hope not...would you?"

"Game hasn't started yet," Jess reminded her, drawing another half-smile from Rory.

"And thirdly..." she trailed off.

"Thirdly?"

Rory dropped her eyes, and then flickered them back up to Jess' serious face, "No mercy." Her voice was firm, clear and direct. It was her eyes that gave her away. They glinted in the candlelight, showing Jess a totally new and mischievous side to her. It both amused and amazed him to see her like this. Four days. Had it really only been four days? Four days since he had first sat down opposite her in the diner and heard her talk about Shakespeare. From the first time she had opened her mouth, he's been gone. Head over heels. Crazy for the girl. However one cared to describe it, that'd been it for him. And now here she was, sitting across from him in a cheekily gaping shirt and low-riding jeans, grinning at him as she double-talked, confusing and astounding him into complete silence. Almost complete.

"Do I go first?"

Rory smiled, "Why not?"

Jess bit his lip and looked down, thinking. The stakes were high, for him at least. If he could only...

"Battle of Hastings?"

"1066. Are you insulting my intelligence on purpose?"

"Thought I'd start you off easy, seeing as you're about to be beaten..."

"You wish..."

"_You_ wish."

"Lead singer of the Clash?"

"Joe Strummer. Lead actors in Casablanca?"

"Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman. Freud's first name?"

"Sigmund. Year that Shakespeare died?"

"1616. States where doctor-assisted suicide is legal in the US?"

Jess swore.

"Ten, nine, eight..."

"I know this, I swear...Maryland...California?"

"Seven, six, five..."

"Rory, I'm warning you...Washington?"

"Four, three..."

"Shut up...I'm thinking...Texas? Michigan?"

"Two...one..."

"Rory...Nebraska?"

"Ha!"

"Fine!" Smiling good-naturedly, Jess pulled his shirt over his head and turned to toss it behind him. Rory gasped out loud when he moved to where he had been sitting opposite her – his muscles glinted and rippled as they moved and Rory caught her breath again. She had to hug both her arms around her to stop her hands reaching out for him. She couldn't help herself – she wanted to touch him, to run her hands all over him until he touched her back. But she couldn't. Rule number one said so – and Rory was nothing if not someone who played by the rules no matter what. Rory closed her eyes firmly. Jess' naked torso was doing its job: distracting her. She needed to not be distracted. She needed to not look at Jess' body. Jess started the game back up in a flash.

"And it's Oregon and Texas. Lead in Almost Famous?"

"Kate Hudson. First five digits of the Golden Ratio?"

"1.6180 - who solved Fermat's Last Theorem?"

"Nobody. Rory. Why are your eyes closed?"

"Concentrating."

"Open them."

"No."

Jess crawled towards her and slipped behind her back, lips tantalisingly close to her neck.

"Rory..." His breath blew across her skin, gentle, making Rory have to fight the urge to turn around and grab him.

"No touching." She reminded him, mentally cursing herself for reminding him.

"I'm not touching..." His words sent shivers across her skin and down her back.

"Name of the Sex Pistols' Greatest Hits album?"

"Kiss This. Country between Austria and France?"

"Switzerland. First two lines of the chorus of Guns of Brixton?"

"The...something..."

"Ten...nine...eight...seven..." He was still behind her, and every number he counted blew cool air across her skin.

"Six...five...four...three..."

"Jess, I know this."

"Two...one..."

"Something...la...la..."

"It's 'You can crush us / You can bruise us'. I expect you to know that, Gilmore." Jess got to his feet and returned to his position across from her, the candle between them. His chest glimmered again as he sat down. Rory pouted at him, lips pink and slightly swollen from the night before, but pulled her shirt over her head, tousling her hair slightly as she did so. Her pale skin shone in the dim light of the candle. Jess swore under his breath. They were even, except he would've betted large amounts of his Walmart money that he was more distracted by the sight of her skin than she was by his. Opposite him, Rory was making the exact same wager in her head. It was going to be about who got distracted faster and they both knew it.

… … …

Rory didn't know how much time had passed, but Jess was sitting in one sock and his boxers across from her. She was clad in her bra and underwear only, and Jess' breathing was getting heavier as he drew on the last remaining shreds of his self-control. He mentally took inventory. He had the capitals of Syria and Kazakhstan to thank for the fact her socks were in one corner, and William Blake's first poem to thank for the fact that her jeans were draped over his bed. And when she hadn't been able to remember the drummer in The Doors, she'd taken off her headband.

"You have more clothes than me," he managed to accuse her.

She smiled, flicking her hair back out of her face. He'd lost his jeans to the middle initial of Lord Byron and his other sock to the year that Australia had been colonised.

"Largest country in Africa?" she asked him.

"Sudan. First colour movie ever made?"

"Wizard of Oz. Hitler's wife's name?"

'Eva Braun. Star of 21 Jump St?"

'Johnny Depp. Turkey's capital city?"

"Ankara. Year of Gone With The Wind?"

"The book or the movie?"

"The movie."

"1939. Gangster's name in Billy Bathgate?"

"Dutch Schultz. Molly Ringwald's character in Pretty in Pink?"

Rory let go of a breath she didn't know she had been holding.

"Ten...nine...eight...seven...six...five..."

"Pass?"

"No passing. Four...three...two..."

"Annie...something?"

"One...It's Andie Walsh. How could you not know that?"

"I did know that! I just couldn't think of it with you – there – all...muscly and glinty...it's your fault!"

"Tough love, baby."

"I knew it!"

"Yes."

"I did!"

"Sure..."

"Jess!"

"I believe you."

"Fine!" Not taking her eyes off his, she reached behind her and unclasped her bra. It fell to the floor by her knees, but Jess didn't notice. He only had eyes for the almost-naked girl in front of him. Her breasts were small, round – perfect. He'd seen them before, but somehow there was something a little different than teasing her in Luke's storeroom and seeing almost all of Rory lit up by candlelight in his bedroom – the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. Unknowingly, he reached his hand towards her.

"Rory -"

There was a burning desire in his eyes, so intense that it almost scared her. She dropped her eyes to the floor, and then caught his gaze again. Her clear blue eyes stared unashamedly into his face, his brown eyes darkened with his desire to have her. In that moment, nothing else mattered.

"Jess -" Rory started to say, her hair falling over one shoulder. Everything and anything she did seemed to turn Jess on even more. When she moved her hand self-consciously to her chest, he imagined that it was his hand caressing her.

"Rory – remember what we..." Jess trailed off not trusting himself to go on. Oh God. His voice was deep, husky and rough – and Rory honestly thought that she wasn't going to be able to handle it if he kept talking. Her desire to push her breasts into his hands, to grind herself against him and feel him touch her everywhere was overwhelming her. Never, in anything she had seen, read or previously felt had prepared her for this. Sure, she had missed Jess, she had wanted to be with him, but she had never felt nor imagined this all-consuming need to feel him under her hands, to feel his hands on her. Jess seemed to read everything she felt in her eyes, because he reached for her hungrily, his self-control in tatters.

"Good thing I never cared much for rules..."


	11. In Which Jess Makes A Difficult Decision

**Hope this is to all of your liking…and once more many apologies for the time between uploads. Review if you liked…review if you didn't…enjoy as always! MTL**

Rory had quite literally been winding him up for hours. There hadn't been a single second since her nod of consent to start the game where Jess hadn't been tortured by his imagination. Rory underneath him...Rory with her tongue in his mouth...Rory's hands around his –

"Oh – God – " he managed to groan as his hands cupped her face and pulled her to him. His mouth frantically covered her neck and then ran lightly up her jaw and to her lips. He let his eyes close to savour the feeling of Rory's lips between his own, which he didn't think he would ever get used to, not matter how many times he kissed her. Her hands wandered up his back and to his hair. She tangled her fingers through it, holding Jess' face to her. One hand left her cheek and wandered down to her chest where it just rested, feeling her heart beat for a moment. Even as Rory inched further towards him on her knees, her lips never left his mouth. Jess was on his knees too, but he leant backwards and sat on the floor. Reaching for Rory's hips, he guided her towards him and settled her in his lap, knees on the floor on either side of him. He straightened his back to press up against her. His hard muscles against her soft curves felt curiously intimate, Rory noted, as both his hands crept to her back to pull her against him.

Rory could feel her breasts pushed up against his bare chest and his arousal pressing into her thigh. She stiffened, trying to keep Jess as comfortable as she could, knowing that if she moved, she would brush against him even more.

"Relax..." Jess voice whispered in her ear, "Move if you want to."

It was a mark of how implicitly she trusted Jess that she moaned as she ground herself against him. Hearing his answering groan only wound her up further and she moved again, circling her hips even as Jess grabbed her shoulders and pushed her roughly to the floor. Her back slammed into the carpet, but it wasn't painful. If anything, it felt fantastic. Jess pressed himself down over her, and Rory could feel every single part of him crushed her wonderfully into the floor, and all she could do was wrap her legs around his hips and pull him down and against her. Her lips kissed every part of him that she could reach, occasionally straying from his mouth and attacking his ear or his neck. Rory knew Jess well enough by now that she could tell what was turning him on, but it was getting harder and harder to think rationally as he ground his hips into her and she felt every inch of him pressing against her and into her.

Her breathy moans turned into gasps as Jess crawled down her body to kiss her breasts, which turned into soft screams as he drew one into his mouth and proceeded to drive her unconditionally crazy with his teeth and tongue. All Rory could do was arch her back off the floor and fist her hands into his hair as Jess slowly but surely drove her insane. Jess took one of his hands and put it to her wrist, and guided it to the floor behind her so that she could support herself. When Jess paused to rain kisses across her stomach, she sat up and dropped her hands to his boxers. Easing her fingers under them, she tugged, all the while fighting for breath as Jess' lips ghosted over her sensitive skin.

She felt Jess' hand cover hers, and then guide it away from his hips. Rory looked up at him, questioning. Jess sighed, and then ran a hand through his hair, staring Rory straight in the eyes.

"Rory..."

"Jess."

"Rory...please..."

Jess sat up properly, and Rory sat opposite him. She was still topless, which made it even harder for Jess to say what he wanted to say.

"I know everyone in this town thinks you're an angel that lives on top of a Christmas tree...and God knows I know that's not completely true – but I can't do _that_ with you – not yet. I want to – God knows I want to. If I tried to explain how much I wanted to, you wouldn't believe me. There is _nothing _I would rather do than make love to you, Rory, there's really and truly isn't. But I can't do that to you. Not yet, not now. Nobody should have as much meaningless sex as I used to – if you knew, you might understand. I know this is all new to you and it feels like there's nothing you want more in the world than to lose your virginity, but you'll end up regretting it if you rush it. I promise, Rory, my self-control won't last forever. You have no idea how hard it was for me to move away from you just now...but that's the way it has to be, or I'll never forgive myself. Rory? Are you angry?"

"I just don't..."

"I know you don't. But you have to trust me. You're smarter than me at almost everything. But not this, Rory. Not this. I've been around the block and back with this too many times. I will make love to you, Rory, if you want me to. Just not right now. Understand?"

"I – Jess..."

"This is the way that it has to be, Rory, try and understand that. And now..." he picked up Rory's shirt and twisted it around his fingers a few times, "This is one of the hardest things I've ever had to do, but..." he trailed off, and then handed her the shirt. She buttoned it, never taking her eyes off Jess' face as he watched her. She stood, and his eyes took in her beautiful slender legs as she walked away from him to slide her legs back into her jeans. Neither of them spoke as she gathered her socks and her shoes, and then turned back to Jess.

"We should play that game again sometime..." she almost whispered as she slipped her feet into her shoes. Then she over to where Jess was sitting with his back against the wall and knelt. She pulled his chin towards her and kissed his lips, sliding her tongue into his mouth and her hand onto his waist at the same time. It was brief, passionate, and Jess' hot skin shivered all over.

After she left, he threw his other sock onto his bed as he headed straight for one of the coldest showers of his life.


	12. In Which Jess Comes To Realise Something

**Yes, I've lost track of the days.**

**Just enjoy the Chapter.**

**Much love from MTL.**

Jess' hand was warm and rough on Rory's – his thumb stroked her fingers and rubbed circles around her wrists. It felt absolutely wonderful that something so innocent could feel so amazing – all you had to find, Rory realised, was the right person to give it to you. They walked passed Doose's on the way to the square, and Rory could feel Taylor's eyes on her and Jess. She squeezed his hand tighter, knowing that Taylor could see them both and would probably translate the story into something suggestive to tell her mother. Rory was grateful for the fact that her mother trusted her far more than she had ever trusted Taylor, and would at least give her a chance to explain before jumping to Taylor's conclusion that she and Jess were 'engaging in inappropriate activities' in the gazebo. Some version of which Luke had been presented with just yesterday afternoon.

They had agreed to be together in relatively public places until they felt that they could trust themselves in private. Jess could feel his restraint growing thinner and weaker everyday – hell, every _minute_ he spent with Rory. At least in the gazebo they had the gaze of the townspeople to discourage them from getting too intimate. If they were alone indoors again, Jess didn't think that he would be able to help himself, especially if Rory gave him her famous angel-eyed look that never failed to make his breath hitch and his jeans tighten.

It had been nearly a week since their version of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire had very nearly gotten out of control on the floor of Jess' bedroom, and true to his word, Jess was being a perfect gentleman in his treatment of Rory. He picked her up from the school bus everyday and they discussed everything from the Rolling Stones to the _Iliad_ until it got dark and he walked her home. Today, it was poetry.

"Jeez, why can't they say what they mean already? Why go on and on and make you decipher their crazy madness until you get to the point?"

"It's beautiful...you have to decipher it because it adds to the meaning in the end. It's like a battle – once you've sorted through everything, you get the satisfaction of understanding it that much more deeply."

"Poetry is a waste of paper – you could fit the main point of every poem into one line and save all that paper."

"Literary blasphemy!"

"It's true."

"Prove it. Prove that great poems can be condensed into one line."

"Fine. _The Lady of Shallot_ – don't love anyone who wears thigh-length boots. _The Tyger_ – don't mess with God. _Yertle the Turtle_ – don't stack turtles. See?"

"You are unbelievable..."

"Admit it. Poetry is a waste of space."

"Never."

"What about love poems? Romantic? Or a waste of space?" Rory raised her eyebrows, glaring at him defiantly.

"Depends on who's reading them to me..."

"You're full of it." Rory slapped him across the shoulder. Jess loved that Rory hit him and actually expected it to hurt. Her touch was like a feather to him, and it felt amazing even when she was angry. _Especially _when she was angry.

"And you're a hopeless romantic."

… … …

Not that things didn't get heated. Just the other night, Jess had been saying good-bye to her in a thoroughly non-verbal fashion against the back wall of her house, when Rory had whispered the sexiest thing he'd heard in a good long while into his ear. It was dark, it was deserted, and they'd just made up from an argument about the greatest member of the Beatles. ("Lennon, no question." "Hello...Ringo!" "Bite your tongue!" "I'll bite _your _tongue...")

Jess hands had wandered up under her pleated skirt and Rory had shifted against him and stroked her tongue against his. Trying incredibly hard to make naughty schoolgirl fantasies leave his imagination so he could concentrate on not letting himself lose control, he felt Rory's thigh press in between his legs even as he pushed her further up against the wall. Gasping for breath, his hands had crept higher and higher until a guttural moan from Jess had caused Rory to remember where they were – and consequently realise where Jess' hands were. She guided them back to a more appropriate location, actually sighing as she did so. She wanted Jess _so much_ that staying at first base was killing her. But she didn't think the town – or her mother – could handle it if she turned out to be anything other than the innocent girl-next-door that lived down the road from the diner and helped out at the Christmas pageant. She had been _that_ for seventeen years.

Rory also recognised that Jess was right about at least one thing – if she blew right past her first time quickly and carelessly one afternoon, she would regret it forever. Not who it was with – three weeks with Jess had made her incapable of imagining being with anyone else – but the manner in which it was done. She knew that when she was with Jess, time had a way of standing still and his chest had a way of making her less shy and more outgoing than ever before. She had always been a careful girl, pro-con lists notwithstanding, but something about Jess made her lose it. She knew what it was, too.

He knew exactly which buttons to push at any given moment, and boy, did he push them.

And she loved it.

… … …

"Where've you been?"

"Rory's."

"Uh-huh," Luke eyed him warily, clearly wondering whether to trust him. His hair may not have been 'different messy' this time, but there was something about him that Luke couldn't quite put his finger on. Surely he wasn't...

"I speak the truth, uncle." Jess sighed and dropped into a chair, hand running through his hair.

"I know that face."

"Oh yeah?"

"Jess...you –"

"No."

"It's –"

"Impossible."

"You –"

"Fine! I have, then..."

"See? I'm not totally useless."

"Luke?"

"Jess?"

"I've gone and fallen in love with Rory Gilmore."

Luke only smiled.


	13. In Which Rory Come To Realise Something

Jess paced up and down the kitchen, ducking under the phone cord as he tried to do what Luke had asked and take care of the ordering for that week.

"No...ten pounds of the beef patties and twenty pounds of the rindless bacon. Yes...No! No - twenty pounds! No - the bacon, not the turkey...No...The..."

Beep.

Jess cursed under his breath, ignoring the scandalised look from Miss Patty and the gleeful look from Babette. He untangled himself from the phone cord, which took longer than was strictly necessary and made him curse again. This time, it was not softly, nor was it under his breath.

"Not again! Jess!"

"It's not my fault if the delivery guys can't tell the difference between turkey and bacon!"

Luke glowered. "You can't swear in the diner!"

"You swear in the diner!"

"I would never say..." he looked around, lowering his voice, "...that word...in the diner! Look, Jess, whatever's going on, leave the language upstairs."

"I..."

But Luke was unstoppable. "I don't care if you are in l-"

And with the worst word Luke had heard in years, the diner door slammed and Jess was off down the street, sprinting faster than Luke had ever seen him move in a year.

... ... ...

"I love you. I love...you. I love you...lots...I love - damn!"

"Aw, Jess, I love you too."

For the third time that day, Jess swore. Lorelai was sitting, knitting needles poised, behind him on the bench in the gazebo. Jess had blown past her in such a hurry that he hadn't even seen her. Lorelai looked up, amused.

"You kiss my daughter with that mouth?"

Jess clamped his hand over his mouth and looked down at the ground. For the first time in his life, he found himself strangely close to a sensation that felt like fighting back tears. Rory was so precious to him, yet it was driving him crazy. He couldn't tell her he loved her, he couldn't tell anyone he loved her, because he had told so many girls over the years that he loved them and every single time, it had been a lie. He thought of Rory's small hand in his, how small and fragile and delicate it was, and was reminded of how determined he was not to hurt her.

"Jess, I've been there. Everybody's been there. You fall in love for the first time in your life and you realise that all the other times you thought you were in love or you said you were, you really weren't because they were nothing compared to how you're feeling now."

Jess swallowed. He wasn't sure how he felt about Lorelai being able to read his mind.

"I'm not reading your mind, you know."

Damn! How did she do that?

"Why...why are you knitting?" he managed.

"Taylor was being...well, Taylor, this morning, and he suggested that we all sit in the gazebo and knit, and then people would sponsor us and we could rebuild the bridge."

Jess fought down a flashback that involved Rory, scantily dressed in the middle of the night, straddling him not far from that bridge.

"You'll get through it, Jess. Whatever it is, she's a smart girl. I should know...she is my favourite daughter."

... ... ...

Rory paced up and down her bedroom, twisting her shirt in between her hands. Never, never before in her young life, had she felt so torn. Jess was clever, smart, talented with his fingers and undeniably sexy. That much she was clear on. But he hadn't said...he'd never said...

She sank to her bed, fighting back tears. They had agreed to be together only in public places until they could trust themselves in private. But she didn't feel that she would ever be able to trust herself in private around Jess. Their innocent little game of Who Want To Be A Millionaire had nearly ended in passionate sex on the bedroom floor, and what had worried Rory the most was the fact that she had really wanted it to. Every part of her body had wanted it to end that way. Every part of her body burned at the mere though of his touch, his kiss.

She lay on her back on her bed and closed her eyes. She hadn't seen Jess for nearly a week, not since they had argued about the Beatles and then resolved their argument against the back wall of her house. She couldn't be sure, but she had a feeling that that was the night that had tipped her over the edge. That had made her want Jess more than life itself. But then again, maybe it had been watching Jess see her shirtless, or feeling him press against her in the store cupboard, or sitting in his lap in the diner that first night, or maybe even the first day she saw him walking down the street in his leather jacket.

It was strange, considering how recently they had met and the whirlwind nature of their romance, that she had come to depend on him so much. She yearned to feel his lips on her mouth, caressing her gently and making her want to melt into him. She longed for his touch, his hands on her skin, causing the delicious rippling over her and through her, driving her to a place where she felt things coursing through her that she had, up until that point, only ever read about in her books. He made her thighs tingle and her stomach tighten and her hands grab at him, raking her nails down his back until his wonderfully hard body was touching her in all the right places, the hot places on her body that positively ached with the need to feel him pressed against her.

The doorbell rang, which jerked her out of her little fantasy, and made her realise with some embarrassment that one of her hands was lingering on her thigh and the other was curled around her breast. She jumped up, splashes of red colouring her cheeks and her hair mussed on one side where she had rubbed her head against the pillow. And although she couldn't have known, she also had a wild, lustrous gleam in her beautiful blue eyes. But then again, maybe she did have some idea that something had changed inside her. Because at that moment, she came to realise something. Something that would change the way she saw things, particularly Jess.

She pulled open the door, still guiltily struggling with the needful thoughts that plagued her. Then her mouth fell open.

It was Jess.


End file.
